A milestone year on the field by Eastern Michigan University's
intercollegiate athletic teams has been capped by a record-breaking
fundraising effort.
The EMU Athletic Club, the university's athletic fundraising
and alumni outreach organization, completed its 2007 fiscal
year, ending June 30 with $715,302 in cash and gifts-in-kind based on preliminary year-end figures. The total is
a 30-percent increase from 2006 and eclipses the record
of $705,241 established in 1993.
 |
RECORD YEAR: The EMU Athetic Club, the
university's athletic fundraising and alumni
outreach
organization, was able to garner a
record $715,302
in cash and gifts-in-kind for
2006-2007. |
"We are so grateful to all the alumni, parents, friends
and fans who stepped up in support of our fantastic student-athletes
this year," said Director of Athletics Derrick Gragg. "Our
athletes excel in the classroom and on the field, and they
represent EMU daily with pride and distinction. Their accomplishments
would not have been possible without the generosity of
everyone who contributed to our program and made these
historic fundraising results a reality."
The Club had 1,250 donors in FY 2007, a 50-percent increase
from 2006. Unrestricted giving through the Eagles of Excellence
Fund increased 208 percent to $22,421 in 2007. This
news follows a record-setting year on the field.
In 2006-07, eight EMU men's and women's teams won Mid-American
Conference championships, a conference record. Three Eagles
earned first-team Academic All-American honors, 10 were
selected for the MAC Scholar-Athlete Award and an EMU record
35 Eagles were singled out for first-team Academic All-Conference
honors.
"This was a true team effort," said Craig Fink, director
of development for athletics. "Our fundraising success
would not have happened without the great work of our coaches,
athletic administrators, the support of the EMU Foundation
and the efforts of the EMU Athletic Club Board. Our focus
now turns on properly thanking those who made gifts and
continuing to grow support for our fantastic student-athletes.
We still have much work to do and our sights will be set
even higher in the coming year."
Founded in 1994, the EMU Athletic Club is the umbrella
organization for all athletic fundraising and alumni outreach
efforts. All gifts to the EMU Athletic Club are processed
through the EMU Foundation, a non-profit 501(c)(3) corporation
in support of WMU. For more information, visit www.emuathleticclub.com.
